Helping Hand

23 August 2012 | 9:08 pm | Tony McMahon

“I thought about getting a producer involved,” he continues, “but I just thought ‘why not do it myself’

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Emerging local singer/songwriter Hayden Calnin has followed the success of his debut single, Summer, with a new release, For My Help, the first off his EP, City. The new single negotiates the minefield of emotion-laden indie-folk with deftness and maturity that belie Calnin's tender years, and should be further evidence – if any is needed – that this guy is an artist truly to 'watch out for'. Given that For My Help represents the first offering from his EP, we ask Calnin if he chose it because it would give listeners a taste of things to come, but he indicates the opposite.

“I think it's more a stand-alone song. I don't know how to put this, but I guess it was designed to be a single in some respects. It started life as a much longer track, and I will record it that way one day, but I cut it in half here because it just seemed to be the one that I wanted to represent me at this stage.”

As well as an obviously talented musician, Calnin has a degree in film, with a major in sound design. We posit that this is something positive that the music industry as a whole will soon begin seeing a lot more of, so we ask Calnin what he thinks of it as a pathway into his chosen career.

“Studying film and sound design has really influenced what I do musically. I found myself becoming really interested in the sound in films while I was studying. It can really make or break a film. And the skills I learned at uni – going out and recording sounds and matching them with images, things like that – I'm pretty much doing the same thing when I make music. I have to find the exact right sound for the right bit of the song.”

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So, given he studied sound, it must have been something of a no-brainer that Calnin would produce his own record? He agrees, although he does indicate that this might not always be the case.

“I thought about getting a producer involved,” he continues, “but I just thought 'why not do it myself'. That was great because of the time I had to do it, I never felt like there was any rush to get it done on a deadline. I've got all these songs I want to record, so an album is definitely on the cards. I really love producing, though I think for something like that in the future I might get a producer involved on maybe a few tracks. It's always great to learn new things, which is part of it as well.”

Calnin's music has the rare quality of being both delightful to listen to on record, while also striking the listener as being music they would like very much to see live. Your correspondent wants desperately to ask about the live show, but is journalistically bound to enquire first about Calnin's recent performance at Tamworth.

“Tamworth was… interesting,” he says. “I think that's the only way I can describe it. The culture they have there and the appreciation is really something. I played in front of 3000 people with an amazing backing band. It was an experience of a lifetime, really. But I think next time I'll decline the big auditorium and do a little busking thing, that's where the real spirit of Tamworth is.”

And how will Calnin replicate his complex sound live at the launch? It seems his backing band are in for some work, but not all that much.

“I play half the set solo and then bring a band on and do the rest of the set with them. It's going to be a big band to try and replicate the sound of the CD live. I want it to be, like, if you're going to come and see me live, make it this show. It's going to be something really special.”